The Dragon Keeper
by Hellen says what's up
Summary: Hiccup and Astrid have a baby boy, and they name him Stoick Haddock the second (Stoie for short.) Little Stoie possesses a power that no one else has. He can understand dragons to their full potential, read their minds and even control them if he pleased. People far and wide are after this child. Will Hiccup and the Land of Berk be able to save their future leader?
1. The beginning

The dragon keeper

**Hiccup and Astrid have a baby boy, and they name him Stoick Haddock the second (Stoie for short.) Little Stoie possesses a power that no one can understand. He can understand dragons to their full potential. People far and wide are after this child. Will Hiccup and the Land of Berk be able to keep their future leader safe?**

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><p><strong>This is an introduction to a multi chapter fic I may or may not finish depending on how much support I get on it. This isn't my best work, but I wanted to post it anyway because I wanted to see if I could start this. We'll see how it goes.<strong>

**Now proofread.**

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><p><em>This... is Berk. It snows nine months of the year, and hails the other three. Any food that grows here is tough and tasteless. The people that grow here are even more so. The only upsides are the pets. While other places have...ponies or parrots, we have... Dragons.<em>

_My name's Hiccup the Chief of Berk. You may have known my father, Stoick the Vast. He was a great man, and sadly passed away about a year ago. This is the story of the grandson he never met…and, my son, Stoick Haddock the Second. You see little Stoie wasn't like other Vikings. He had a connection with Dragons that goes back to the dark ages, but I'll get to that in a minute._

_Let's just start from the very beginning…_

"Man, I need to sit down." Hiccup jumped off of Toothless' back, doubled over as he attempted to catch his breath, his cheeks red from the bitter cold air above the clouds and his hair slightly ruffled from the current of the wind. Toothless sat beside his trainer, his eyes wild and friendly as he nuzzled Hiccup with the side of his nose. "Yeah, I know, I know." Hiccup stroked his dragon on the top of the head, causing Toothless to give a slight purr. "You know, I think we're done for the day."

Suddenly, an echoed voice from behind the young dragon trainer called off from the distance. "Hiccup!" Valka called from the edge of the village. Hiccup squinted and shielded his eyes from the sun to spot his mother, standing in the far remoteness.

"Mom?!" Hiccup questioned. She yelled something back, though Hiccup couldn't hear her over the sound of the wind by the Cliffside. "What?!"

He saw his mother roll her eyes and cup her hands around her mouth, propelling her voice. "The baby's coming!" She screamed. That time, Hiccup heard loud and clear.

"The baby's coming?" Hiccup questioned. Suddenly, the boy seemed to slap back into reality. "Oh my god, the baby's coming!" Toothless rolled his eyes as his trainer jumped onto his back. "Come on, we gotta go!" Hiccup stated, shifting Toothless' saddle into gear. The two of them took off towards the house. "I'm gonna be a dad Toothless…I'm gonna be a father!" Toothless made a strange noise from the back of his throat as the two of them flew to their destination.

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><p>Everyone had gathered around the center of the village to await the news of the newborn heir to the tribe leader.<p>

Hiccup stood outside of the house, a rush of adrenaline coursing through his veins. It was like the first time he'd ever rode a dragon, only one thousand times worse. He couldn't decide whether he wanted to celebrate or puke. On the one hand, he'd been waiting for this moment for so long, it was like a dream come true. On the other hand, why on EARTH did he want to become a dad?! What if he dropped it, or forgot to feed it or set it on fire?! Keeping a child was a great responsibility, and he wasn't sure whether he was ready for that.

Well, there was no turning back now.

The front door swung open, and Valka pocked her head out from the doorway. Everyone, including Hiccup, turned to face her as she said, "It's a boy." The villagers let out a roar of exhilaration as they cheered for their new successor. "Come on Hiccup." Valka held out her hand to him. Hiccup took a long, slow breath, before Toothless nudged him on his back, urging him to go inside.

As he walked into the room, he saw Astrid, sitting upon the bed, her arms around a tiny bundle wrapped within a thick brown fur blanket. Astrid looked up to see Hiccup and she smiled. "Hey, look it's your daddy." The baby made a funny noise that was only just loud enough for him to hear. "Get over here." Astrid whispered.

Hiccup cleared his throat and knelt beside the bed. The baby boy opened his eyes slightly to see Hiccup, staring back at him. "Um…hey there." The baby reached out his hand and touched the side of Hiccup's cheek, before giving a small, high-pitched giggle. Hiccup smiled and let a sigh of relief escape his lips.

The baby had bright blue eyes like his mother, but had adopted Hiccup's disheveled brown hair. "Stoick Haddock the Second…our little Stoie."

"He's perfect." Astrid whispered, giving her son a light kiss upon the forehead. To see a warrior like Astrid so calm and peaceful was astonishing. It was something Hiccup wasn't quite used to.

"Your father would have been so proud." Valka smiled at the couple as they gathered around their new child. "If only he were here to see it." Hiccup gave his mother a look of thanks.

Hiccup and Astrid heard Gobber cheering outside the house, "We must hold a celebration to honor the future Chief of Berk!" A wild uproar of agreement was sounded, making both Astrid and Hiccup chuckle.

Suddenly, the door burst open, and Toothless popped his head through the door, smiling his strange toothless smile. Hiccup raised an eyebrow at his dragon. "Hey buddy. What are you doing?" Toothless looked over at the baby, and then back at Hiccup, an eager look upon the dragon's face.

"I think he wants to say hello." Valka chuckled. Astrid stood up slowly, Hiccup giving her a hand as she did so. She walked over to where Toothless stood.

"Go on then." She urged. "He's just a baby, he won't bite."

Toothless sniffed at little Stoie, his eyes becoming slightly larger as he looked down at the little ball of life. Suddenly, Stoie's big blue eyes opened up to greet Toothless' ivy green ones. Stoie held up his hand towards the black creature, unafraid and openhearted. Toothless sniffed Stoie's hand and placed his nose upon his palm. Stoie giggled as the dragon licked his hand with his wet tongue and nuzzled him with his nose.

_It's not every day you see a newborn baby pet a Night Fury, but believe me, Toothless was just the beginning._

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><p><strong>To be continued in chapter 2! (If in fact I do decide to continue this) tell me what you thought in the comments!<strong>


	2. Dragon's egg

**TIME JUMP WARNING: WE'VE OFFICIALLY JUMPED FORWARD BY FOUR YEARS. I know I suck. This will probably be the only time jump though.**

**Hope you enjoy! :D**

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><p><em>Four years later…<em>

"Bring him with you they said, he'll be fine they said." Hiccup trudged through the knee-deep mud, grumbling in irritation as he wiped the sludge off of his stained armor. "Well, that's never coming off." Toothless shook his head in an attempt to get a splatter of grimy filth off of his ear. "Well, congratulations buddy, we've officially lost my son for about the eighth time this week. Honestly, I take my eyes of the guy for two seconds and then he's gone." Toothless made a noise of complaint, nudging against Hiccup's shoulder, almost causing him to trip back into the heady mud beneath them. "I know, I know, I'm a terrible human being. But it's okay, we'll find him before Astrid gets back. It'll be fine. Besides, he's only been gone for about five minutes. What harm could he do?"

Suddenly, Toothless stopped in his tracks. Hiccup looked at his Dragon in confusion. The Night Fury stared up at the highest point of an oak tree in front of them to see Stoie standing upon the very top branch, reaching his tiny arm out for something. Toothless made a throaty noise of panic.

Hiccup's eyes widened in terror as he spotted his four-year-old son, carelessly wondering seventy feet above the ground. "Stoie!" The young shaggy haired boy looked down to see Hiccup and Toothless staring up at him. He smiled and waved down at them absentmindedly.

"Hello papa!"

"Oh my God, okay, um, don't move! We're coming to get you!" Hiccup called, jumping onto his dragon's back. "Come on Toothless." The two of them took off into the sky, circled around the tree, until they were right next to Stoie, hovering by his side. "What are you doing? How did you even get up here?!"

"Grandma taught me how to climb tree." Stoie informed, a goofy smile on his face.

Hiccup let out a fatigued sigh. "Of course she did...well that's just perfect." Hiccup picked his son off the branch and sat him on Toothless' back. "How many times do I have to tell you to not wonder off on your own like that?" Stoie chuckled and stroked Toothless down his back. The Night Fury purred in contentment. "Your mother is going to kill me when she sees the state you're in." Toothless took off back to the village, flying through the low-hanging clouds, over the woodlands, following the streams that lead to the heart of Berk.

By the time they made it back, the sun was beginning to set. As Hiccup jumped off of Toothless, he heard a familiar voice call, "Hey look, the Chief finally made it. What took you so long Hiccup?" Snotlout questioned. Fishlegs, Ruffnut, Tuffnut and Snotlout all stood in the center of the village with their dragons saddled.

"My kid kind of got up a tree." Hiccup laughed nervously under his breath. "Yeah, that was weird."

"No kidding." Tuffnut chuckled, glancing over at the little guy. Stoie was a strange little kid, probably just because he got those genes from Hiccup. He was a natural with dragons and didn't display any fear towards them. Maybe it was because he was too young to understand the meaning of fear.

"Well anyway," Fishlegs began, adjusting the helmet above his head. "We're all going to go do a little bit of exploring round uncharted territories. You coming with us?"

"Eh, I think I'm a little worn down." Hiccup dug into his pocket and pulled out a familiar sheet of yellow parchment. "Take this if you're going into new lands." Hiccup tossed the map to Snotlout who caught it and stuffed it into his bag, giving him thumbs up. "See you guys later." He saluted.

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><p>"So, what's my little dragon trainer been up to today?" Astrid said as she picked her son off the floor and ruffled his hair. Stoie giggled as her mother gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Did you have fun?" The boy nodded enthusiastically.<p>

"Can I go play with Stormfly and Toothless?" he asked.

"It's getting a little late for that sweetie. You can go play tomorrow morning." Astrid said warily as she put her son back on the ground.

"Ah, let the boy have his fun." Valka laughed as she hung her helmet up on the wall peg. "Nothing's gonna happen to him. Not while he's playing with a bloody Night Fury, that's for sure." Stoie looked back at her mother pleadingly.

Astrid let out a sigh of slight exasperation, "Fine, go on." Stoie beamed a great smile as he dashed out of the front door, passing Hiccup as he did so.

"Hey." Astrid greeted as he walked into the house. She gave him a short kiss and warm smile.

"Hey." He replied, taking her hand.

"So, how'd it go?" she asked.

"It was…alright I guess." He smirked. "Tomorrow, you're taking care of him."

"What? The chief can't handle a little four year old." Astrid chuckled. "I expected more from a muscle man like you."

"Ha-ha, very funny." Hiccup mumbled sarcastically. Astrid gave him a light kiss on the nose and smiled. "I love you."

"I know you do."

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><p><em>The next day…<em>

"I found it sitting by itself on a tree. I haven't told papa yet because I don't want him to worry about it. I think it's a Night Fury." Stoie held the egg on the tabletop, being careful not to break it. Valka stood beside her grandson, looking closely at the strange crystals embedded within the shell.

"I've never seen an egg such as this before. What makes you so sure it's a Night Fury?" She asked.

"Toothless told me." Stoie explained, tucking a warm blanket around the large egg. Valka shot him a look that read simple unadorned bafflement.

"Toothless? The dragon talked to you?" Valka questioned with great perplexity.

"Well, not exactly…I can't really explain it." Stoie chuckled contentedly. "Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe it's a chicken egg!"

Valka laughed under her breath and tussled the young boy's hair. "Well, I highly doubt that my boy."

The four-year-old rested his chin against the edge of the table. "Is it true that Dragon eggs explode when they hatch?" Stoie asked, staring at the stray egg.

"Well—" Before Valka had a chance to answer his question, Astrid burst through the front door, a look of panic upon her face. All color had drained from her skin and her breathing was fast and unsteady. "Astrid, what's gotten you all driven up?"

"Bandits. They're everywhere. They want our dragons." She panted, attempting to catch her breath.

"Bandits? How'd they find Berk?" Valka questioned, placing a hand upon Astrid's shoulder, attempting to keep her calm.

"The Trainers were followed back here." Astrid explained. "Hiccup's trying to reason with them. We have to go."

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><p><strong>To be continued in chapter 3! I know, this wasn't a very eventful chapter, but next one will be way, way, WAY better. Promise!<strong>


	3. Goodbye to Berk

"Who are you people? Who sent you here?" Hiccup stood within the center of the village. A group of dark haired Vikings from another land stood upon the lands of Berk with torches of fire within their grasps and dragons even Hiccup himself had never seen before. Their faces were painted with black stripes that marked them as Bandits. The people of Berk watched from inside their houses, seeing the scene play out.

Within the band of Bandits stood a large bulky Viking almost twice the height of Hiccup. He appeared before Berk's chief with his own colossal sized dragon beside him, a dragon that Hiccup recognized as a Thunderdrum. "It appears we've come to the right place lads." The man said. A roar of laughter sounded from the herd. "The famous lands of Berk. The birthplace of bonds between Dragons and Vikings."

Toothless stood beside his trainer, growling and bearing his teeth before the strangers, his eyes narrowed into catlike slits. The Thunderdrum huffed at the tempered Knight Fury, as though preparing to attack it. "I'll ask you one last time. Who are you, and who sent you here?"

"My name's Gath. These are my people. And of course, I know who you are. The famous Hiccup Haddock the third, son of Stoick the Vast. I expected more of a man, instead I'm greeted by a little girl." The bandits laughed and Hiccup shook his head in annoyance. "I see you have a Night Fury. Strange. I thought they were extinct."

"Well you thought wrong." Hiccup snapped.

"Ooh, better watch your tone lad." Gath mocked the young dragon trainer, looking down on him like a child. "Hey, I'm a reasonable man. Here's what we're gonna' do. Hand over the Dragons, and we'll give Berk its peace. If not, then we'll have no choice but to burn your precious land to the ground. It's your call."

"Don't give them anything son." Hiccup turned to see Valka, Astrid and Stoie pushing past a crowd of villagers to stand beside him. The rustics of Berk had never looked so shaken. "You can't give our dragons to these ruffians."

"Valka, it's been too long old friend!" Gath chuckled deeply.

"Wait, you know these guys?" Hiccup questioned.

"What are you doing here Gath?" She questioned, ignoring her son for the time being. "How dare you show your face in these lands!"

"Stoick is dead, this land is practically worthless. All I want…is the Dragons." Gath turned towards his band of Bandits with a sneer of animosity. "Enough talk. I'm tired of playing games."

As soon as those words left the man's lips, the Thunderdrum stood up upon its feet and in one quick movement, it snapped its wide jaws at the enemy. Hiccup pushed his family back away from the vicious creature.

"Cover your ears! A Thunderdrum can kill you in an instant with its cry." Hiccup called to the villagers, who soon coward away from the beast. Toothless jumped in front of his trainer in defense, growling at the larger creature.

"He's a loyal pet, that's for sure." Gath smirked. "Just kill them." The Thunderdrum opened his mouth, and began to form a ball of fire from the pit of his throat. Toothless prepared himself to fight back…when suddenly…something incredible happened.

Stoie had slithered out of his mother's grasp and had run in front of Toothless, using his body to shield the Night Fury, whilst holding his hand in front of the Thunderdrum. "Stoie, get back here!" Astrid pleaded in a moment of panic. "You'll be killed!"

"It's okay mama." Stoie said, in a slow, calm voice. "He's not going to hurt me…are you?" The Thunderdrum stared down at the young boy, a look of confusion on his wide face. He looked into the boy's bright blue eyes that reflected the color of the sea. "It's okay, I won't hurt you. I promise." All eyes were on the boy. Astrid and Hiccup stood behind Toothless, both so shocked they could hardly move. Even the Bandits couldn't believe what was going on. Stoie stroked the creature down the nose and smiled. "Please don't hurt my family." Stoie whispered. The Thunderdrum seemed to nuzzle against Stoie's hand, making a strange grumbling noise, before backing away from the boy and lowering his head.

"…Stoie?" Hiccup stared down at his son, unable to even think straight. "…How did you…do that?"

"He was just confused. He didn't want to hurt anybody." Stoie explained. "He was only following his orders."

"Incredible… that a boy…" Gath stared down at the young four-year-old, taking a step towards the child.

"Don't touch him!" Astrid hissed, reaching down and scooping her little boy off the ground. "My son is non of your concern."

"The future Chief of Berk, I presume?" Gath questioned. "It seems to me, your child possesses a power beyond ours. I've spent years to train my dragon to be obedient and to kill at command. How is it possible that my words can be broken by a simpleminded child?"

"He's the son of the greatest dragon trainer who has ever lived. It was taken in by blood." Valka stated strongly.

Gath shook his head. "No. This boy is different. Even you can't control a Dragon's actions simply by commanding it." Gath took one last glance at the child, before smirking and patting his Thunderdrum on the back. "Change of plans Chief. Here's what I suggest. We will leave you and your dragons alone for the rest of eternity, on one condition. Give us the child."

Hiccup stared at the man in complete shock. "What? No! Are you insane, I'm not giving you my son!"

"Then you'd better prepare yourself for war." Gath stated simply. He was being serious. He was willing to go to war…for a child?

"You're completely over your head old man." Hiccup said, though his voice was shaken. "I don't care what the deal is, you're not getting my son."

Gath seemed surprised, though his look was soon followed by a chuckle of amusement. "Have it your way." He turned towards his men. "Lads, we go back to the Master, and tomorrow, we shall return with all our men, and commence war against Berk!" A cheer of merriment sounded from the group of bandits. Hiccup felt his pulse quicken, knowing that this could very well be the end of Berk.

Hiccup turned his back to the bandits, to see the villagers of Berk behind him, looks of horror at every turn. "…You heard what he said…prepare for war." At the end of the day, what was more important, his role as a chief…or his role as a father? It wasn't a fair decision to make.

That's why little Stoie wasn't going to make him choose.

"Wait!" The bandits went silent, as the young Viking of four feet tall ran from his mother's side, yet again. Stoie stood in front of Gath, who towered over him like a giant. Not an ounce of fear seemed to strike the child. "You don't need to go to war. I'll go with you instead, if it'd make you happy!"

At first, Hiccup couldn't even move. He was simply frozen to the spot, unable to believe what was happening right before him. "S-Stoie, what are you…"

"You always told me that war was pointless and if there was any way to stop it, you would. I want to be like you papa! I'll stop this war to protect you and mama and Toothless, and all the people of Berk. They're my family. No one hurts my family." Stoie said sternly.

"Stoie no!" Astrid screamed, attempting to run after him, only to be held back with Toothless blocking her path with his body. "What are you doing you stupid dragon, move!" She commanded, fear and panic washing over her in a great wave of dread. Astrid beat her fist against the side of his back, though Toothless didn't budge. "Stoie! Please, come back! Please! Listen to your mother!" Astrid felt her tears begin to fall, not that she could care for them anymore.

"You're a brave kid, you know that." Gath stated, "Like ya' grandfather." Valka's heart stopped at the mention of Stoick. "Well Hiccup. A deal's a deal. Come on Lads."

Astrid collapsed onto her knees, unable to stop her heart from shattering within her chest. Astrid had experienced a lot of pain in her life, both physical and emotional...but never in her entire life had she ever felt like this. Hiccup watched as one of the female bandits took Stoie's hand, and began to lead him away with the group.

He wasn't sure what to say…but it proved something to him. Although Stoie was nothing but a little boy, he definitely was his son. He was willing to sacrifice everything for his people, and in that moment, Hiccup had never felt so honored to call that boy his child. "Stoie!" Hiccup called. The young boy turned his head to see his parents off in the distance, already feeling a little homesick. "I'm proud of you son! I'm so proud of you! This is not over! We will find you! We'll bring you home Stoick I promise you that! I love you son!"

_I love you too papa…_

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><p>"With all due respect sir, what makes you think the master will want this boy? He's just a child, he's not even a warrior." One of the younger bandits said.<p>

"Did you not see what he did to my dragon? He bought a killing machine to its knees! Yes, he may be an innocent child now, but train him right, and he can become the ultimate weapon against dragons. We will be the strongest tribe in all the lands! We will be unstoppable."

_Unfortunately, the bandits weren't the only ones with this idea. It didn't take long for rumors to spread like wildfire, and one thing began to lead to another…_

_But Stoie is, and always will be my son…I'll protect him with my life. I'll fight for him with my life._

_Not that that boy needed my protection for long._

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><p><strong>To be continued in chapter 4!<strong>

**IMPORTANT PLEASE READ: So, this is one of two different versions of this chapter. The other version is that Stoie does not step forward and the bandits give Berk three days to prepare for war. If you think that that would have been a better version of this chapter then please tell me and I'll gladly replace it with the second one.**

**Sorry about that. I'm just a little paranoid.**


	4. (Substitute chapter)

**Hi! So, I just wanted to say a thank you to guest reviewer 'A random person' and 'Incarnate Firefly'! Their feedback was very much helpful and I'm a little less hazy on what I'm going to do with this story. Due to the fact I've been an idiot and actually lost the replacement chapter, I decided to just leave it how it is, but both 'A random person' and 'Incarnate Firefly' have given me a really good idea for future chapters, so once again, thank you!**

**Also, this isn't much of a chapter because I'm abroad right now and didn't really have much of a chance to write a good one. Hope this is alright, but it's not a proper chapter. Next one will be a full chapter, promise :D**

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><p>"I send you out for dragons, and you bring back a boy?" The leader of the Viking bandits sat within the main hall upon a great throne made entirely out of dragon bone. Gath, along with a pair of his most noble bandits, stood before their leader.<p>

"It's not like that sir, just hear me out. This is no ordinary child. He possesses power." Gath explained. "I believe he acquires the command of the Dragon Keeper."

"Nonsense, the Dragon Keeper fell many years ago. Do you take me for some sort of fool?"

"If you don't believe me, see for yourself." Gath turned to the set of main wooden doors behind him. "Bring in the child!" He called boisterously. As his voice echoed through the hall, the doors were swung open, and in walked little Stoie, guided by the set of bandits from before. "This is Stoick Haddock the Third, son of Hiccup Haddock and grandson of Stoick the Vast."

The boy looked up at the man who sat so high and mighty upon his great throne. The dragon bones seemed to discomfort the child, though he displayed no look of fear, which was strange for a boy so young. "You're saying this child can tame any dragon?" The leader asked. Gath nodded and gestured towards Stoie. The leader looked the boy up and down, rather unimpressed. "Fine, let's see how he goes against mine." At the Leader's word, a great iron gate that was placed at the other end of the hall was shifted open. For a moment, the only sound in the room was the cranking of the chains upon the gate. The room sat in silence as the gate reached its maximum height.

Suddenly, a great Whispering Death darted from within the cage, across the room, scanning for targets, or perhaps just something to eat. It bared its strident teeth as it let out a wild call. "This is my own little pet. I'm sure _you_ are familiar with it, if you are indeed the son of the Greatest Dragon trainer who ever lived."

At that moment, the Whispering Death spotted Stoie, and without hesitation, darted towards him, its spikes spread out, ready for immediate attack. Without so much as a wince, Stoie held his hand out in front of him, like his father had always done, and just like that, the raging Dragon stopped, about an inch away from him. He looked down at the boy in utter confusion. As Stoie stroked the beast down the nose, its spikes recoiled and it laid its head upon the ground. "Hello, my name's Stoie. Don't worry I won't hurt you. I'm your friend now."

The leader had gone completely silent. The child showed not even the slightest hint of distress for his life. He watched as Stoie continued to pet the creature, letting it nuzzle against him like it was some sort of puppy. "Impossible…I've only heard of such power within legends…could this boy really be the descendent of the Dragon Keeper?" The Leader questioned.

"It's amazing, I know." Gath smirked. "You understand, this child is now yours, therefore, his power is now yours."

The Leader nodded and let a grin creep upon his lips. "Take him to the dragon's dungeon. I have great plans for this…Dragon Keeper."

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><p>"They were sailing towards the south side, so our best bet is to head south to see what we can find." Hiccup stated, circling a part of the map with his stick of charcoal, being careful not to smudge any of the markings.<p>

"But we've already explored those areas before!" Astrid exclaimed. "Maybe if you paid a little more attention to our search, you'd know that by now!"

Hiccup tossed the piece of charcoal onto the tabletop in frustration. "You don't need to yell at me, I know what I'm doing, Astrid. I want Stoie back as much as you do-"

"Oh really? 'Cause it sure as hell didn't look like it." Astrid hissed, spiting her words like venom. She took a deep breath in and closed her eyes. "Do whatever you want, okay. I'm flying out to the north with Stormfly to expand the search. I'll find him myself."

"Astrid, I'm sorry." Hiccup stated, noting the distressed tone within her voice. "I'm sorry for not being the father you want me to be, but I made a promise to find him, and you of all people know I don't break my promises."

"I wish I could believe you Hiccup…but '_sorry_' doesn't bring my son back." Hiccup watched as Astrid left the main hall, the door closing with a thundering clunk.

"God dammit." He uttered to himself, feeling his composure begin to break.

"Hey, you okay Hiccup?" Fishlegs asked as he walked in through the back door of the room. "You look a little pale."

"Don't worry about it Fishlegs." Hiccup stated as he rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand. "Have you found anything?"

"Nothing on the Bandits, but check this out!" Fishlegs walked over to the desk and awkwardly slid Hiccup's map off the surface, dumping a two-ton book in its place, dust escaping from its aged pages. The title read '_TALES OF THE DRAGON KEEPER' _printed in great bold acrylic. "I found it on the bottom shelf in the library…you might want to read it."

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><p>"You want me to talk to them?" Stoie asked, standing within the center of the dragon pit. It was a dungeon designed to house a million dragons more or less. At every turn, there stood a gate with a different dragon behind it. They sneered and growled viciously as Gath pushed the four-year-old boy into the room.<p>

"Well, I want you to make 'm war-worthy." Gath stated. Stoie could hardly hear him over the sound of the beasts growling and snarling. He seemed more intimidated by the dragons than Stoie, which to be honest, was no surprise. "Ya see, these creatures couldn't be tamed, even by our leader 'imself. That's why we got you ta' do it."

"War-worthy? You want me to train them to fight?" Stoie asked. "But what if I don't want to?"

"Well, then the Leader will have ye' head for it. I don't make the rules kiddo." Gath chuckled, though, still keeping his distance from the gates. "Good luck mate."

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><p><strong>Uneventful chapter, I know. Next chapter will be better because I'll be able to get into it a little more.<strong>


	5. Ariel

**I cannot express as to how sorry I am. I know, it's been ages, but I'm back now. I've just been going through a lot of stuff recently (personal stuff) but I'm back now, and if anyone still wants to read this be my guest because I intend of finishing it now. **

Toothless sat by the edge of the river, rolling the strange egg into the waterside. He watched with bright eyes as the egg slowly sunk to the bottom of the shallow river, which he could only just see through the clear cerulean water that flowed gracefully down from the woods to the village. Toothless blinked a few times and waited for something to happen.

A few moments later, bubbles emerged to the surface of the water, disappearing as they rose. The Dragon lowered his head slightly, his eyes becoming somewhat larger. Suddenly, a rather eccentric looking baby dragon broke through the surface of the river and paddled feebly through the water. Toothless took a step back in surprise as the newborn baby dragon attempted to crawl from the riverside.

He tilted his head to the side and used his nose to nuzzle the baby Night Fury onto dry land, just beside the river. The baby dragon coughed and a tiny flame fell from its throat. He began to sniff around, as though it were searching for something.

The baby dragon looked up at Toothless, its bright green eyes identical to his. Toothless made a strange growling noise, and the baby Dragon seemed to smile.

* * *

><p>The dragon pit was rather large, about thirty times the size of the training pit back in Berk. Stoie stood at one end of the vast hall; carrying a small wooden stick he'd found lying on the floor. Beside him stood a fully-grown Deadly Nader, rather similar in comparison to Stormfly, only its scales glistened a slightly darker color of blue and green. "Okay, ready when you are Spike." The Deadly Nader seemed to make a noise of grievance, shuffling its wings and lowering its head. "Come on, don't be such a sissy."<p>

With that, Spike bent down slightly, allowing the small child to crawl clumsily onto his back. "Fair warning, I've never rode a dragon before. Well, I have, but not without Papa, so…" Spike shook his head and made a strange squawking kind of sound similar to one of a bird. Stoie chuckled under his breath and gave Spike a pat on the back.

In one swift movement, Spike took off from the ground, darting into the empty space above the dragon pit. Stoie jumped in slight shock and held onto the dragons back for support. "Well, alright then." Spike seemed to struggle to stabilize himself, wobbling every so often. "Don't worry Spike, just take it slow, okay?" As the Deadly Nader began to glide from one side of the pit to the other, Stoie began to relax a little. "Not bad for a first time, hey Spikey?" Spike grumbled and shook his head slightly, making a strange growling noise.

At that moment, Stoie heard the abrupt sound of the main door sliding open. He heard an unfamiliar voice echo through the halls. "Hello?" Stoie spotted a young girl maybe around six years old standing by the entrance, carrying what looked like a barrel of fish in her arms.

Stoie gave Spike a light pat on the back, and the dragon began to descend back onto the ground. As soon as Spike spotted the girl, his eyes narrowed into slits, his wings shot up and he began to growl at her with his sharpened teeth. The young girl let out a shriek and scrambled for her knife upon her belt. "Spike, down boy!" Stoie called, Spike lowered his wings and turned to his trainer, cocking his head to the side and obediently taking a step away from the girl. "Sorry, Spike's not very good with first impressions." The girl trembled for a second her eyes wide with panic. "It's okay, he's not gonna' hurt you."

"Y-you're the Dragon Keeper?" She asked, slowly putting her knife back into her belt pocket.

"The what?" Stoie questioned. Spike began to nuzzle the back of his neck with his nose. "Not now Spikey." Spikey growled at him in annoyance. "We'll play in a minute."

"The Dragon Keeper." The girl repeated. "They said they'd brought him here to train our dragons. I've read stories about the Dragon Keeper…I didn't know he was so little." The girl giggled.

Stoie chuckled and shook his head, scratching the back of his neck. "Well, I'm no Dragon Keeper. My name's Stoick, you can call me Stoie."

The little girl returned the boy's friendly smile. "Hello Stoie."

"Now that you know who I am, can I know who you are?" He asked, leaning against Spike's wing.

The girl looked the boy up and down, before she hummed and said, "My name's Ariel. I work for these people."

Stoie hummed and scratched his chin. "So, you're not a bandit?" Ariel shook her head. "Are you a slave?"

"Well…they promised my family freedom after the next war." Ariel said, looking down at her feet, tapping her tattered shoes together. "But…I don't believe them."

Stoie frowned, for a moment seeming as though lost for words, until a thought crossed his mind. "Hey, you want to know a secret? Promise not to tell anyone though."

Ariel nodded. "Okay, I promise." Stoie leant in and whispered something into her ear. "You're crazy."

Stoick gave a shrug and grinned. "It runs in the family."

* * *

><p><em>Long ago, lived a mighty warrior known by the name of Rago The Great. It was rumored that this man had been cursed at birth, and wielded the power to control dragons, being able to read their minds and understand their strengths, as well as their weaknesses.<em>

_Rago died upon the night of the New Year, but the story tells us that his spirit escaped from his mortal body and the soul of the Dragon Keeper still wonders, looking for a new worthy figure to place its powers upon…_

"So you're saying my son's body has been possessed by a ten thousand year old spirit?" Hiccup questioned, looking up from the blurred lines upon the page.

"More or less." Fishlegs shrugged, sitting opposite the chief, his arms crossed over his chest.

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me." Hiccup hit his head against the wooden tabletop in front of him. "Of all people to have been possessed by some voodoo magic, it had to be Stoie…well isn't that just great."

"It's not such a bad thing, is it?" Fishlegs said, shifting in his seat slightly, leaning over the large book upon the table.

"Not such a bad thing? The only reason Stoie's in this mess is because of the Dragon Keeper!" Hiccup's cheeks had become slightly flushed, mainly caused by stress. "I just don't get it. Why Stoie? What makes _him _so special that Rago would choose him?"

"Well, he is the future chief of Berk." Fishlegs said casually. "Maybe that's why."

"I'm going to find him." Hiccup stated, standing from his seat. "Fishlegs, I need you to see if you can find out if there's a way to reverse the curse. Until Stoie looses his power, it's never going to be over."

"Aye, aye sir!" Fishlegs saluted.

"I'm counting on you."

* * *

><p>"The Bandits took me and my people away from home about six months ago." Ariel explained, watching as Stoie began prodding the Zippleback his wooden stick. The Zippleback gave a hiss, one of its heads giving a snap while the other nudged Stoie on the shoulder.<p>

"Play nice." Stoie warned.

"They invaded our lands, and now they're going to invade yours." Ariel said.

"No they won't." Stoie gave a smile that seemed similar to his father's. "My parents wouldn't let that happen. They're super strong you know. My Papa was one of the first people to ever train a dragon. He's the bravest Viking I've ever known."

"He must be where you get it from then." Ariel said, causing Stoie to give a look of gratitude.

"Some day, when I'm Chief of Berk, I'll get rid of all those nasty Bandits." The boy pulled himself onto the back of the two-headed dragon, swinging his staff over to his left hand.

"You're going to…kill them?" Ariel asked cautiously.

"I won't kill them." Stoie huffed, patting the Zippleback on its wing. "I don't kill people. Papa says it's wrong to kill. I'd just have to get rid of them somehow."

"Oh," Ariel said with a giggle, "okay then."

"Hey you!" A voice bellowed from the entrance to the pit. Ariel turned to see Gath storming over to the both of them, his eyes practically fuming. "What do you think you're doing in here? This area is off limits to slaves!"

"S-sorry sir, I was, um…" Ariel shied away from the man, too timid to find her words. "I was…"

"Shut up, slave! Did I say you could speak!" Gath barked, grabbing her by the arm in a painful grip, causing her to cry.

"Hey, stop that!" Stoie yelled, jumping from the dragon's back and running towards Ariel. "Let her go!"

"Piss off, kid!" Gath shoved the child back, causing Stoie to fall to the ground with a thud.

It was then that the Zippleback leaped in front of his trainer with a shriek, using its wing to shield Stoie whilst hissing threatening volts of fire at the Bandit. Gath practically jumped out of his own skin, releasing Ariel from his grip and pacing back to the other side of the pit as the dragon continued to lurk over him, growling and huffing.

"I thought you were supposed to train these things!" Gath cursed.

The Zippleback moved its wing, allowing Stoie to stand. "I did. I trained it to defend its leader." Stoie stroked the dragon down its wing. "Dragons weren't built to fight, but they will if they have to. You should know better."

Gath gave a grumble of annoyance. "You think you're so strong don't you. Trust me, kid. When The Leader hears about this, you'll be wishing I'd killed you."


End file.
